India-Myanmar ties: PM Modi urges ‘fair and inclusive’ elections in meeting with Junta Chief
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Myanmar’s military ruler Senior General Min Aung Hlaing on August 31, on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Tianjin, China. During the meeting, Modi expressed hope that the upcoming elections in Myanmar would be conducted in a “fair and inclusive” manner involving all stakeholders.
According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Modi reiterated India’s support for a “Myanmar-led and Myanmar-owned peace process,” emphasising that dialogue and consultation are the only viable path toward stability. The two leaders also reviewed bilateral ties and discussed cooperation in areas such as development partnership, defence and security, border management, and connectivity projects under India’s Act East policy.
Foreign secretary Vikram Misri told reporters that Modi welcomed Myanmar’s election announcement and underlined that dialogue was key to fostering peace. However, Myanmar’s state-run media claimed India had agreed to send election observers and support Myanmar’s SCO membership bid, claims not reflected in the MEA’s statement.
Rights groups condemned Modi’s outreach, saying it risked legitimising the junta, which seized power in 2021 by toppling Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected government. Justice For Myanmar spokesperson Yadanar Maung accused India of “propping up a criminal junta” and warned that sending observers could grant credibility to what it described as a “sham electoral process.”
The planned elections, scheduled to begin in phases from December 28, have drawn criticism for excluding Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD). Hlaing has threatened punitive action against critics of the polls, further deepening doubts about their legitimacy.
Modi’s meeting with the Myanmar military chief follows his talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Tianjin, his first visit to China in seven years, as India navigates regional diplomacy aimed at balancing China’s influence in Southeast Asia.
Senior General Min Aung Hlaing and I held talks in Tianjin. Myanmar is a vital pillar of India’s Act East and Neighbourhood First Policies. We both agreed that there is immense scope to boost ties in areas like trade, connectivity, energy, rare earth mining and security. pic.twitter.com/Sxs32TsiTK
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 31, 2025
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Karnataka Transport Dept uncovers alleged ₹37 lakh tax evasion involving Lamborghini in Bengaluru
Bengaluru: Officials of the Karnataka Transport Department have uncovered an alleged tax evasion case involving a luxury Lamborghini Huracan Evo in Bengaluru. The evasion was carried out with forged documents which were allegedly used to evade over ₹37 lakh in road tax and penalties, officials said on Monday.
According to a report published by The Indian Express, an anonymous email was received by the transport department on December 12, 2025, which alleged that using fabricated documents, H1 Car Care had fraudulently registered the high-end vehicle at the Kasturinagar Regional Transport Office (RTO). The additional commissioner (Enforcement) ordered an inquiry after photographs of the allegedly forged paperwork, attached to the email were examined.
A police complaint was filed by Senior Motor Vehicle Inspector Ranjith N at the Kodigehalli police station. The complaint noted that the Lamborghini, bearing registration number KA-03-NX-0016, was originally purchased by Harsha Infra Cons Pvt Ltd from a Lavelle Road showroom on June 1, 2022, for ₹3,00,68,729.
The vehicle was temporarily registered at the Electronics City RTO from June 2 to July 1, 2022. Later the company sought permission to register it at a Regional Transport Office in Hyderabad, Telangana.
Investigators discovered that the accused had allegedly created fraudulent documents. He stated that H1 Car Care purchased the same vehicle in September 2025, about three years after it was sold and registered to Harsha Infra Cons. The alleged purchase price was shown as ₹3,00,58,729.
An official quoted by TIE said that the forged documents reused the same invoice number that had originally been issued to the first buyer, which is illegal. Investigators called an authorized Lamborghini dealer during verifications, who confirmed that the vehicle was sold to Harsha Infra Cons. The dealer further claimed that the invoice dated September 1, 2025, was reportedly issued to H1 Car Care, however it was never generated by the showroom and seemed to be faked.
After reviewing the paperwork, the Kasturinagar RTO determined that the fake papers were utilized to achieve the illegal registration. Officials informed that the vehicle was also undervalued to evade road tax and penalties amounting to over ₹37 lakh accumulated over the three-year period.
Following confirmation of the forgery, senior transport officials ordered the immediate seizure of the vehicle. The Lamborghini was traced on February 7 and seized from Sahakarnagar, where it was found linked to premises associated with H1 Car Care.
